


The Sound Of Singing

by kitkatt0430



Series: DCTv Gen Bingo 2019 [3]
Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Caitlin is certain she can't be the only one who can't sing, Caitlin may not be able to sing well, Gen, Humor, Karaoke, Team Bonding, The musical talents of Team Flash, but she loves dragging her friends out to karaoke, team fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-05
Updated: 2019-07-05
Packaged: 2020-06-02 13:21:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19442287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kitkatt0430/pseuds/kitkatt0430
Summary: After being reminded that Barry is not the only musically talented member of Team Flash, Caitlin searches for someone else who is a terrible singer on the team.  Surely she's not the only one who can't hold a tune?





	The Sound Of Singing

**Author's Note:**

> For the free space on my DCTvGen Bingo Card
> 
> Inspired by how many cast members of the Flash are good singers. They're ridiculously talented.

"Critters have feelings," Cisco was singing under his breath, "Well critters have feelings... Critters have feelings too..."

"What are you singing?" Caitlin asked, giving him an odd look.

"Oh, uh, I was watching _Hoodwinked_ last night and one of the songs got stuck in my head. At least it isn't the schnitzel song." Cisco grimaced slightly, "sorry if I was bothering you."

"No, that was... that was fine." Caitlin yawned, covering her mouth. "It's too early," she muttered. It was their normal nine AM start, but considering they were up until ridiculously late the night before talking Barry through navigating a particularly large car pileup to reach survivors in time it was definitely too early. "I just didn't recognize the song. I haven't seen _Hoodwinked_ ," she added. "That's a cartoon, right, not some Cary Grant movie?"

"Yeah, it's a cartoon. Well, CGI cartoon. I don't know what Cary Grant movie you're thinking of, though. Anyway, the song is called... well... _Critters Have Feelings_ , which makes up a lot of the refrain... and unfortunately that's the section stuck in my head."

"At least your voice sounds lovely when you sing." Caitlin sighed. They use to go to karaoke bars fairly often - her, Cisco, and Ronnie - but the last time she'd gone had been with just Barry and it seemed she was doomed to ever be the worst singer of the lot. (Not terrible, but not good either. Unless alcohol was involved - it usually was - and then she quickly veered from 'not terrible' to 'painfully off key' in record time.) "You know... its been a while since I last heard you singing. It's nice to hear again." Caitlin smiled. "We should do a karaoke night with Barry. Let you two wow the crowds together."

"That'd be fun," Cisco agreed slowly, then added, "I've missed doing that when Ronnie was... missing." Missing and not dead after all and it was still a miracle Caitlin didn't quite know what to do with yet.

"When he comes back again, it'll be the four of us." Caitlin turned to Dr. Wells as he wheeled into the room. "What about you, Dr. Wells? Any good at singing?"

"Well, I'm no Glee Club alumni like Barry is, but I can carry a tune. I do not, however, do karaoke. So if that was where this was going, I appreciate the offer but no." The older scientist smiled crookedly to take the sting out of his words.

Caitlin, however, frowned and crossed her arms. "Can everyone on this team sing except for me?"

Cisco grinned impishly, "sorry Caitlin."

"This isn't fair," she muttered, grumbling to herself.

* * *

"But I'm a creep, I'm a wierdo. What the hell am I doing here? I don't belong here," Hartley was singing along with the music, though he turned it down when Caitlin paused in the lab doorway. "Something I can do for you, Caitlin?" he asked, primly. As though he hadn't just been belting out the lyrics like he belonged on a sound stage or something.

"Just wondering when Team Flash is going to become the next hit musical," she said. "I don't think I've ever heard you sing before."

"Yeah, well, I generally didn't at work. But my labs far enough away from everyone else's now that no one's gonna care if I blast my music and sing along." He shrugged and waved his hands absently to accentuate his point. "So how are things going with..." he shrugged again and gestured in the general direction of the pipeline.

"He's taunting Barry and freaking out Cisco and generally being a pain in the ass," Caitlin responded, garnering a raised eyebrow from Hartley.

"Why Caitlin. I don't think I've ever heard you swear at someone not me before."

"You've never seen me road raging after being cut off in traffic. That was mild." Caitlin smirked as Hartley's eyebrow climbed higher. "We all know he's manipulating Barry to get what he wants and I'm pretty sure that on the off chance Barry doesn't agree to what Dr. Wells wants, he's got a backup plan to get out of the cell."

Hartley grimaced and nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure he does too. I don't want to see him, though. As far as I'm concerned, I won. If I go down there now, I just give him an in to start a new game with me and I don't want him screwing with my head again."

Caitlin nodded, getting his logic. "Cisco went to talk to him. He was pretty upset afterwards."

Wrinkling his nose in distaste, Hartley sighed. "Exactly my point. No more head games."

"You should come with us the next time we go sing karaoke," Caitlin said, changing the subject and giving him a peace offering all at once. "I'm a crappy singer, but Barry and Cisco are amazing and Ronnie's pretty good."

Humming thoughtfully, Hartley shrugged. "That does sound oddly fun," he admitted noncommittally. 

"I just wish I wasn't the only awful singer on this team," Caitlin added ruefully.

"Well, you had to be bad at something. Might as well be that. Can't be as terrible as some of those people who'd try out for American Idol though."

"Not sober, anyway," Caitlin agreed, trying not to laugh when Hartley side-eyed her suspiciously.

* * *

"Joe was a jazz singer?"

"And pianist," Cisco filled in. "Barry's really upset, though. Blames himself for Earth-2 Joe's death, so..."

"Don't hound Joe about his vocal talents in front of Barry for a while?" Caitlin filled in. Internally she was pouting a little, though, because honestly? Why was everyone a better singer than her? What about Iris... could Iris sing?

"Excuse me, I'll, uh, be right back." Caitlin slipped out of the room and found an empty room (not a difficult feat in STAR Labs to be sure) and called Iris. "So here's a weird question," Caitlin said once Iris picked up. "Can you sing?"

"I was in the high school glee club with Barry," Iris replied, amused. "What's this about?"

Caitlin sighed, feeling a touch sheepish. "Everyonebutmecansing."

"What was that?"

"Everyone but me can sing," she sighed. "You realize you have to join karaoke night, right?"

* * *

"I was, um, wondering if you'd like to go to dinner with me?" Julian asked, hesitantly.

Caitlin felt awful. She liked Julian a lot, but not the way he clearly liked her. "It's karaoke night," she told him instead. "Can't skip that. And you have to come now too; it's a team bonding experience. Please tell me you're a terrible singer?"

"I'm actually quite good," Julian replied, looking a touch confused, though not unhappy with this turn of events.

"Dammit," Caitlin muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing."

* * *

It really wasn't fair that Wally could sing too. Just... not fair at all.

 _Beg you something, please_  
_Baby don't you leave_  
_Don’t leave me stuck here in the streets, uh huh_  
_If I get another chance to_  
_I will never, no never neglect you_  
_I mean who am I to hold your past against you?_

"So I'm thinking STAR Labs could have a singing fundraiser for the museum?" HR was saying even as he bopped his head along to Wally's singing.

"At this point we've got nearly enough people to put on our own musical," Jesse chimed in. "It'd be a lot of fun."

"As long as I don't have to sing, it sounds wonderful," Caitlin agreed.

Wally settled down beside Jesse, slinging an arm around her shoulders and making a shooing motion to HR. "You're up man."

HR practically bounced up to the front of the room. "I've got sunshine on a cloudy day," he sang, enthusiastic and cheerful. "When it's cold outside I've got the month of May."

"Oh, this song suits him," Cisco joked. "So, Cait, you're up next. What'll it be?" He gestured to the controller in his hands so he could queue up the song for her. At this point their 'little' group was big enough that they'd go to karaoke bars where they could rent private rooms instead of singing in front of strangers.

Caitlin preferred this setup a great deal. "Ugh, I don't wanna," she grumbled, grabbing her margarita and hiding behind it. "Jesse, you go next."

"Oooh, sign me up for something fun. I... don't think I know enough Earth-1 songs to pick."

"Not Brittney Spears, be nice," Caitlin swapped the margarita in her hands for the controller, much to Cisco's amusement. He set her drink down on the table while Caitlin started running through the list of available songs with Jesse.

* * *

_"So, here's an important question, Frost. Can you sing?"_

"Caitlin," Frost sounded both incredibly fond and extremely annoyed all at the same time. "I share your vocal cords."

_"That's not an answer."_

"Yeah. It really is."

* * *

"Alright, Ralph. You're officially a member of Team Flash. Which means you have to participate in a very important team bonding experience," Caitlin told him. "Even Frost has to participate."

Ralph looked nervous. "Uh... okay? What exactly am I agreeing to here?"

"Karaoke night."

He looked even more nervous now. "Uh... do I have to sing? Please tell me I don't actually have to sing. This is, like, an attendance only thing right?"

"Nope, you have to sing. If I must suffer, you must suffer. Come on Ralph. It'll be fun. Wait... is it that you're an awful singer?" Caitlin tried not to sound too hopeful, but...

"Yeah, actually, I am. My voice goes all nasally and... what. Why are you smiling like that?"

Caitlin just grinned. "I'm not the only awful singer on the team now. Yes!"

**Author's Note:**

> I couldn't find youtube evidence of whether or not Hartley Sawyer can sing, so Ralph gets to be awful just like Caitlin. And she's definitely going to rope him into a duet now. :)
> 
> (The video of Hartley Sawyer 'lost' in Patagonia is hilarious though. Go look it up. "I've never seen this part of the studio before. I dunno if this is, like, an Arrow set or something...")
> 
> I couldn't find Candice Patton singing on youtube either, though we're gonna say that Iris can because her dad and brother are amazing singers.
> 
> We need another musical episode that gives more of the cast opportunities to sing.


End file.
